The Humble Shinigami
by dragonupghost145
Summary: Shinigami become arrogant, Hollows are bloodthirsty, and Quincy are prideful. I'm tired of killing so I've made a vow to never kill again. That vow is reflected in my blade." Strong Naruto, Humble Naruto, and pairing up for vote.
1. Chapter 1

**WHERE IT ALL BEGAN**

The Spiritual Arts Academy is a place where all young Shinigami, in training, go to learn the four basic necessities of being an active Shinigami. The first, of many, things they learn at the Spiritual Arts Academy is Hakuda (White Hits) or better known as fighting with one's own body instead of a weapon. Hakuda is both a feared and respected trait used mostly by the elusive and deadly Onmitsukido (Stealth Force), who are more commonly known as the assassins of the spirit world.

Hoho ( Fast Movement) is another thing taught which involves quick foot movements and is also mainly used by the Onmitsukido. Hoho is one of the basic things students use and will continue to use throughout their Shinigami carrier.

Then there is Kido (Demon Arts) and this particular skill can be classified in three distinct ways. One way is Bakudo (Way of Binding) which is normally used to defend one's self or bind an opponent long enough to attack them. The second type is known as Hado (Way of Destruction) which, unlike Bakudo, is mainly used for attacking one's opponent in a wide variety of ways and lethality. The final form of Kido is known as Kaido (Turn Away) which is actually the Shinigami variation of healing.

Finally, there is Zanjutsu (Swordsmanship) and this is possibly the most common trait among Shinigami, no matter which area of expertise they choose to go into. Zanjutsu is the first art ever taught in the Spiritual Arts Academy and it continues to be one of the sole ways in which a Shinigami fights, for it also implies the use of their Zanpakuto (Soul-Cutter Sword). Without the use of Zanjutsu then there would have never been any point in the creating of the Spiritual Arts Academy.

The Academy is a sprawling, multiple story building with architecture similar to that of Feudal Japan. It has an open courtyard, many classrooms, dormitories, and practice areas for Zanjutsu, Hakuda, Hoho, and Kido. Each class room is designed to fit at least a hundred students at a time, which means more than one teacher is needed for any one class. Finally, above the entrance to the Academy, there is the commandment that all Shinigami are taught, "_Do not seek beauty in battle. Do not seek virtue in death. Do not make the mistake of considering only your own life. If you wish to protect that which you must protect...slice the enemy you must defeat from behind._"

This was the sight which greeted all aspiring Shinigami but one in particular would both prove that commandment correct and, at the same time, prove just how wrong it was. This one soul held a power that could bring the very foundations of the universe to their knees or bring about a peace that has never been known. This one person was named simply Naruto Uzumaki and this was his first day attending the Spiritual Arts Academy.

Naruto stood at roughly four-foot-nine and a half, rather short compared to the other boys his age. Naruto also seemed to be slightly more on the thin side but not enough to where it would hinder him. He wore the traditional uniform for the Academy, considering they were handed out before it even began and Naruto could say, with one hundred percent certainty, he hated the uniform. The blue shitagi and white kosode didn't bring out his bright blue eyes, not even slightly. That and he was forced to wear his long blond hair in a ponytail or get it cut, which he wouldn't even consider doing. They even gave him trouble about his whisker-like birthmarks.

"All first year students please line up to receive your standard Zanpakuto. As per the rules, you are to keep your Zanpakuto on your person at all times and if you lose it you shall not receive a new one. If you are unable to find your missing Zanpakuto within one week then you will be expelled from the Spiritual Arts Academy without a second thought!" yelled one of the instructors, who was overseeing the Zanpakuto distribution.

'They seem like such laidback people,' Naruto sarcastically thought as the line continued until it was his turn to receive his own Zanpakuto.

Naruto's Zanpakuto, much like all the others, was a standard Katana with a round guard and a black sheath. This he found odd because he had seen other Shinigami with very different looking Zanpakuto styles but maybe they switched it up each year for some reason. Anyway, Naruto had seemed to be focusing on his new Zanpakuto too much because a moment later he collided with someone else. This person was a girl, roughly around his height, with jet black hair in a style Naruto had never seen before, purple eyes, and she seemed to be dressed in the female variation of the school uniform.

"Oro sorry about that, I wasn't watching where I was going," said Naruto as he held out his hand to help the girl up, which to girl took happily.

"Well maybe you should, someone could have gotten hurt," the girl hissed, making Naruto flinch slightly.

"Yea I'll do that in the future," Naruto said and, with an all too innocent smile, he began to walk away from the girl.

"Wait!" the girl called as she grabbed onto his sleeve "I'm sorry that came out so harsh. My names Rukia, what's yours?"

"Uzumaki Naruto that it is," said Naruto while giving her a polite bow.

"Well the least I can do is help you find your class Naruto-san. So what's you first class called?" asked, the now named, Rukia as she held out her had for Naruto to give her his schedule.

"I have Kido first, that I do," Naruto said, in a polite tone, while handing her his scroll containing his schedule.

"Well that just makes it easier, I have that same class so we can walk together and I can introduce you to some friends of mine," said Rukia before grabbing him by his sleeve and dragging him towards their first class, all without letting him even say a word.

"O-Oi slow down!" Naruto cried as the slightly shorter, and surprisingly strong, girl dragged him through the courtyard, making some of the other students snicker at the scene.

By the time they arrived at their Kido class, the class had already stated so they both had to withstand the embarrassment of everyone looking at them when they went to sit down. What was even more funny was the fact that they were seated next to one another right at the front of the class. Needless to say, they were the objects of attention instead of the boring Kido class. Well that is until everyone actually got a chance to trying Kido for themselves, then the attention was finally placed somewhere else.

It was then, after all their classes, that Rukia finally got a chance to introduce Naruto to her three friends. The first one he met was a girl, about an inch taller than him, named Hinamori Momo. Momo was a shy girl but Naruto could tell her heart was in the right place. Next was a much taller boy named Kira Izuru and that boy, Naruto felt, needed to get a better outlook on the world because of how depressed he looked. Finally, there was Naruto's polar opposite, Abarai Renji.

For reasons still unknown, both Naruto and Renji seemed to be each other's opponent in the daily Zanjutsu test. This confused most because Renji was the almost undefeated champion of his year and yet he was to fight someone who had never even wielded a blade before. It would be funny if it wasn't so sad.

"Since you're new, I'll make sure to go easy on you," said Renji, a Bokken held loosely in his right hand and a grin on his face.

"Renji-dono if you want a good fight then I will fight you. If you want to taste the ground then fill free to attack me," said Naruto and with that, Naruto stabbed Renji right in his pride.

"Don't think you're better than me!" Renji roared as he took a side swing at Naruto, who simply stepped back out of Renji's range.

"I didn't mean to make you angry but I just wanted to let you know what would happen if you attack me with intent to harm me," Naruto stated, still as polite as ever.

Renji's response was to lunge at the blond, believing his reflexes wouldn't be that well-tuned, but Naruto simply moved his body sideways and allowed the attack to slip past him. Renji swung again and yet Naruto simply ducked under it with an unnatural fluidness.

"I forfeit the match"

* * *

Personally I'm tired of all the stories where Naruto goes around In the Bleach universe and seems to just dominate everything without a second thought. So I've come up with this little idea of a humble Naruto and a Zanpakuto never before created (As far as I know). So review, give ideas, and PM me if you have any questions.


	2. Chapter 2

Abarai Renji was angry, he was so angry that his faced matched his hair color and was gripping his Zanpakuto so hard that it was shaking. No one had ever seeing Renji this angry before and some actually felt sorry for the poor bastard that was Renji's target. Well the sole target of Renji's rage was one Uzumaki Naruto and nothing was going to get in-between him and the blond academy student.

"Renji you're being ridiculous!" said Rukia, who had just spent the last twenty minutes trying to calm her angry friend down, this was proving to be much harder that she first thought.

"I'm being ridiculous?! _That_ back there was ridiculous and I'm not going to be humiliated by some newbie!" yelled Renji as he searched the halls for the blond that had humiliated him in front of a lot of his pears.

"He's new Renji, cut him some slack," said Rukia, who was now trying to stop Renji by hanging onto the back of his kimono.

"Then it's the perfect chance for him to learn who his betters are," Renji growled, almost making Rukia laugh at his "tough guy" attitude.

"So why are you mad then?" Rukia teased, only to suddenly slam into his back and fall on her rear end.

"What the hell Renji?" Rukia asked, before she saw the crowd gathering in the courtyard followed by the sound of a fight happening.

"FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT!" the crowd cheered as Rukia and Renji pushed their way through the sea of students, if only to see who was fighting whom.

What they saw nearly made them go pale from shock. Standing in the center of the crowd was clearly Uzumaki Naruto and someone they both knew not to mess with. You see Naruto wasn't fighting just any other student, no he was fighting a sixth year student who went by the name Omaeda Marechiyo. Omaeda was famous around the Academy for being one of the strongest of his year and for managing to unlock his Zanpakuto Shikai in only his second year. Not to mention his family, the Marechiyo clan, had deep influence in the Soul Society. So the fact that Naruto was still standing was a miracle in of itself.

"You have five damn seconds to apologize of what you did to me, you short little shit!" yelled Omaeda, his larger body towering over Naruto's much shorter one, but Naruto just smiled up at him.

"I apologize for stopping you from taking Momo-dono's food Omaeda-dono, this I am. I just figured that someone of your size wouldn't want such a small rice ball." Naruto said and while his tone was polite, he still managed to insult to sixth year Academy student.

"That's it!" yelled Omaeda as he actually unsheathed his Zanpakuto and went to slash at Naruto, while everyone wondered just where all the teachers were at a time like this.

Rukia watched as Omaeda's blade slowly descended upon Naruto, only for him to smile kindly at her before simply sidestepping the strike. It was done with such smoothness at Naruto appeared to just glide an inch to the right. It was even more shocking, to the other students, to see Omaeda actually miss his target and hit the ground instead. In the past Omaeda only ever missed when it came to facing the trainers but to see him miss to a first year was almost unthinkable.

"You should respect your Zanpakuto more, that you should. I don't believe it likes to dirt very much," Naruto said as he ducked under another swing from the large student, who once again missed only by a hair.

"Stay still you little shrimp!" Omaeda bellowed, his face red with anger and his swings become harsher, nor to mention predictable.

However, no matter how many times he swung, he would always be just a hair away from actually touching Naruto. It was as like trying to cut the wind, no matter how much you try it just won't happen. It was then Renji got a good look at Naruto's eyes and what he saw chilled him to his very bones. Gone were those annoying, happy filled, blue eyes and now they were replaced by sharp icy ones.

"You should really stop, Omaeda-dono. It wouldn't be good if you got hurt, that it would not," said Naruto, who had jumped back a few feet from the fat giant.

"Like a little brat, like you, could ever hope to even scratch me," Omaeda boasted as he jumped at Naruto, only for Naruto to simply move to the side and allow Omaeda's face to say hello to a tree trunk.

The entire courtyard was suddenly filled with the sound of Omaeda crying out in pain after they all heard his nose break, from hitting the tree. When Omaeda stood up, his nose had swollen to almost twice the normal size and blood was freely flowing from the appendage. As Omaeda nursed his now broken nose, Naruto happily walked over to the fallen Momo and helped her back to her feet. Strange that none of the others thought to help the poor girl back up but the sound of Omaeda yelling suddenly interrupted Naruto's train of thought.

"You'll pay for breaking my nose!" he yelled, as he charged Naruto, not caring that he would hit Momo as well.

Renji, without thinking, was about to jump in-between Omaeda and Naruto only for something shocking to happen. Naruto had managed to turn around, in what appeared to be a blur, and plant his foot in the side of Omaeda's face. For a moment time itself seemed to pause, before Omaeda went a few feet to the left with a cracked jaw.

"I told you that you would get hurt, that I did," said Naruto as he walked over to the groaning Omaeda.

Omaeda suddenly spun around and actually managed to land a solid punch on Naruto's face, with enough force to send him onto his back. Seeing the opening, Omaeda quickly picked up his fallen Zanpakuto and swung down on the blond academy student. Omaeda's blade was suddenly stopped by a similar looking Zanpakuto, accept this one was held by one Abarai Renji. Renji couldn't believe he had just crossed blades with Omaeda, of all people, just to save the kid who had earlier embarrassed him.

"You got some nerve Abarai-teme, crossing blades with me to save this little piece of trash," Omaeda spat as he pressed down harder on Renji's Zanpakuto.

"I don't care. You are trying to kill a fellow Academy student over such a lame ass thing. I may not like this brat but I draw the line at killing," said Renji, just as a powerful presence suddenly filled the clearing.

"Oh, what seems to be the problem here?" asked the newcomer, making nearly everyone jump in surprise.

"A-Aizen-taichou," Omaeda stuttered out, having now gone white as a sheet.

"I would love to know why a sixth year student is fighting a first year. Well Omaeda-san?" asked Aizen, his gaze friendly but his words held power that made everyone feel as if they were in front of a _God_.

"W-Well you s-see," Omaeda stuttered but Aizen simply lifted his hand, to signal Omaeda to stop talking.

"I believe you should leave Omaeda-san, and I will be informing the Academy instructors of this little incident," Aizen said as he walked over to a knocked down Naruto and held out his hand.

"Y-Yes sir A-Aizen-Taichou," Omaeda stuttered out as he quickly left the area and headed for the medical office, hoping they would have something for his soar jaw.

"Don't you all have classes to attend?" asked Aizen and, just like that, the entire clearing was empty.

Even Rukia had fled the sight of the Taichou, not wanting to get into any more trouble than she could possibly be in. As she hurried to her next class, Rukia couldn't help but to wonder just what a Taichou was doing at the Academy in the first place. From what she heard, Taichous usually have a lot to do and hardly have time for anything else accept for their duties. Also, why had Aizen-Taichou decided on that specific moment to make himself known when he could have interrupted at any moment and avoid the fight all together?

(Back with Naruto)

"You should really be more careful as to who you fight," said Aizen while helping Naruto stand back up.

"Indeed that I should but I couldn't just let Omaeda-dono take Momo-dono's food," said Naruto as Aizen smiled down at him, with a shine in his eyes.

"Then Momo-san is lucky to have a good friend like you to watch over her," Aizen said as his hand ruffled Naruto's hair.

"Oh I almost forgot, thank you for stepping in when you did Aizen-taichou," the blond said, giving a quick bow to Aizen, before racing off to do whatever it is he forgot to do.

"What an interesting young man," Aizen said to himself, before vanishing.

(With Naruto again)

Something was off for some reason, he could feel it in his bones, and it didn't sit well with him. That look in Aizen-Taichous eyes had put him more on guard than his time in the outer districts. Naruto had almost drawn his blade on Aizen-taichou but he had managed to keep his reflex from doing so. The look in his eyes, at the time, had been kind and caring but that was just the problem. No Captain is _that_ kind and caring to everyone. No there was something wrong with Aizen-taichou.

"I've gotten myself into a big mess, that I have."

* * *

Review, ideas, and PM me if you have any questions. Also still accepting ideas on the pairing.


	3. Chapter 3

Three year had passed since the day Naruto had first joined the Academy and almost every day was full of something fun to do. Naruto had become fast friends with Momo, who now seemed to really look up to him since he defended her from Omaeda, and was already decent friends with Rukia. The only person it took to warm up to him was Renji and that had taken the better part of the year. Apparently, Renji was the type of person to talk with his fist and at first Naruto had been reluctant. Then Naruto actually agreed and, behind closed doors, they fought each other for hours on end. Needless to say, Renji came walking out with a few broken bones but he had a grin on his face that could scare the devil. Naruto, on the other hand, walked out with only a bruised shoulder but soon got beat up by an angry Rukia.

Over the past several years, Naruto has found himself greatly excelling in mostly Kido. Momo was more than happy to share most of her classes with Naruto, mostly to try and impress him with her own skill in Kido. Although Naruto stated several times that, the only Kido he's really interested in is Healing Kido. When asked why, Naruto simply says he doesn't like hurting people so why would he learn things that could possibly kill. Some of the other students called him naïve for not learning how to fight, to which Naruto said that he does know how to fight he just swore never to kill. Then came the day when Rukia was taken from them.

"Y-You're what?" Renji asked, his eyes wide with shock along with all their friends.

"I'm being graduated early and am being adopted by the Kuchiki clan," Rukia said, for like the fifth time in the same conversation.

"Rukia-dono, why could the Kuchiki clan want to adopt you?" Naruto asked, although he was doing a much better job of hiding his shock.

"I haven't been told why, only that I'll be leaving tomorrow morning," Rukia explained, although she didn't want to leave at all.

You see, when one of the four noble clans offers to adopt you then it's in your best interest to accept. If you don't then it could be seen as an insult and the last thing anyone wants is to be on the wrong side of one of the four. Rukia knew this and so she was just trying to make it as painless for her friends as possible. It would be a lot easier to just get it over with than to drag the situation out longer than necessary.

"But why can't you just learn here?" Momo asked, while she allowed her tears to flow freely, not being one to keep her emotions in check.

"It's because they would view it as an insult to their pride. Even if Rukia-dono is adopted, she would still be considered a member and having her go to the Academy would be below her. They will most likely give her private tutors and keep her within the Kuchiki grounds until she is strong enough to be given a high-ranking position. Most things go in politics that way," Naruto explained, showing he had some insight as to how politics ran in the Soul Society.

"How do you know so much about the noble clans?" asked Rukia.

"I took a class on them last year, I remember Renji saying it would be a waste of time," Naruto teased, only to be smacked on the head by said male student.

"Now's not the time to be funny Naruto-baka, we have to find a way to stop them from taking Rukia-chan!" Renji yelled.

"Why would we stop Rukia-dono from going, Renji-dono?" asked Naruto, now having all three of his closest friends state at him.

"H-How could you ask that Naruto-kun?" asked Momo but Naruto just looked at them with a calm expression.

"Perhaps I should explain, Rukia-dono has a chance to grow stronger and be a part of a noble clan. You make it sound as if we'll never see her again and right now you might thing that. However, once we graduate then we'll have all the time in the world to see each other again. Or perhaps we should do what you're all suggesting at stop Rukia from becoming all that she can be?" ask Naruto, with some bite in his tone.

"W-Well no," said Renji.

"Then why don't we spend our last day with Rukia having fun?" the blond academy student asked.

With a nod of agreement, the four friends set out to enjoy the rest of their day. They not only ditched class but they left the academy itself just to go exploring. It had always been a dream of theirs to go through the surrounding forest area, well the part that wasn't guarded, so that's what they did. In no time flat, the entire group was running through the large thick trees, laughing and playing. It had been a wonderful day but now the sun was setting and all four of them sat on the tallest peak of the Academy. They would no doubt be spotted and yelled at but at the moment they were just enjoying the sunset in front of them.

"Man today was awesome," Renji said as he laid back against the roof tiles with his hands behind his head.

"Definitely," Momo agreed as she sat on the very edge of the roof, with a peaceful look on her face and a kind smile that only someone so innocent could have.

"Thank you everyone, this was the most fun I've had in a long time," said Rukia, who was currently sitting on the very peek of the roof, with Naruto sitting right next to her.

"It's the least we could do Rukia-dono, after all you are our best friend," said Naruto, a happy smile on his whiskered face and joy in his bright blue eyes.

"Naruto-kun, can i speak to you in private for a moment?" Rukia asked.

"Sure," was Naruto's response, with a confused look on his face.

"We'll be back in a moment, don't go leaving while we're gone," said Naruto, with a wave, before he and Rukia began to make their way back down to solid ground.

Both being about half way through their time at the academy, they had already learned how to use their reiatsu to make them float instead of fall. This made it so much simpler when wanting to get on top of tall buildings or, in this case, get off really tall buildings. However, because their control wasn't great, their bodies seemed to leak whenever their used their reiatsu for simple tasks. For instance, Rukia left a small amount of ice on whatever she touched while Naruto got an aura around him. One time Renji had been too close to Naruto, when they were jumping around, and found out just what the aura, around Naruto, did.

Apparently, whoever touched Naruto's aura was suddenly filled with an intense fear, which could paralyze the person for several seconds. So until he got control over it, they all agreed to give Naruto some space whenever they trained.

"So Rukia-dono, what did you want to talk to me about?" Naruto asked the moment their feet touched the ground.

"Well I wanted to give you a parting gift. I just thought that since we might not see each other for a while, that you could have something to remember me by," Rukia said, a small blush on her face, as she reached inside her kimono and pulled out some type of red cloth.

"You bought me a scarf?" Naruto asked as he took the light material and found it was surprisingly soft.

"A-Actually I made it," said Rukia, looking away to hide her much deeper blush.

"Really, it looks like you did an amazing job," said Naruto and when Rukia looked back at her friend, she found he had already put the scarf on but sadly he was a little too short for it.

"I'm sorry that it doesn't fit," she said, only for Naruto to chuckle lightly.

"Don't worry, the next time you see me I'll be big enough to wear it like it was meant to be worn. Aw now I wish I had gotten you something," Naruto wined before he snapped his fingers, signaling that he had an idea.

Naruto then loosened his new scarf, so he could reach under and pull out a necklace with a green jewel hanging from it. This little trinket had been with him ever since he had first appeared in the Soul Society and it was, by far, the most important thing to him. It would take something beyond imagination to make him part with it.

"Here, you can have this," said Naruto as he handed his most prized possession over to his, soon to be, noble best friend.

"But Naruto, I can't let you give this to me. You nearly ripped Renji's head off when he took it to tease you," the noble midget said, but the look in her eyes said that she did want to accept it, she was just too afraid of losing it or it getting broken.

"You've been my first friend, since coming to the academy, and I want you to have it. Besides, being a noble means not being rude and if you don't accept it then you will be rude," Naruto teased, only for Rukia to suddenly hit him on the head with a tree branch.

"Baka!" she yelled, while Naruto sat in the corner crying dramatically.

"You're so mean Rukia-dono!" Naruto cried only to stop when he felt Rukia place her hands on his own.

"Thank you Naruto-kun, I promise I'll take good care of it," Rukia swore but when she tried to take the necklace, Naruto pulled it out of her reach before wagging his finger.

"Ah, Ah, as a future Hime I can't allow you to put this on yourself," said Naruto, his tone childlike but it was also rather cute.

To this Rukia just sighed before turning around, allowing Naruto to stand behind her. The sudden feeling of Naruto standing right behind her made Rukia light up like a Christmas tree. Then, almost dramatically, Naruto tied his necklace around Rukia's neck before walking around to face her.

"I knew it, green is your color Rukia-dono," Naruto said with a happy smile, only for Rukia to hit him in the head again.

"Don't say such things so suddenly baka, you never know who might me watching," Rukia hissed.

"I don't sense anyone nearby Rukia-dono, well not if you count Renji-dono and Momo-dono," said Naruto as he looked up to where their two friends still sat, now looking up at the moon instead of the sunset.

"Naruto-kun can you promise me something?" asked Rukia, who suddenly had a very calm look on her face.

"Sure thing Rukia-dono, anything," was Naruto's response.

"Promise me you won't get killed when you join a squad, promise me you'll stay alive long enough for us to meet again," Rukia demanded, making Naruto look at her with a surprised expression before smiling at her.

"I promise I'll stay alive long enough for us to meet again. Hey shouldn't I be making you promise that?" Naruto asked, only for Rukia to suddenly lean forward and kiss him on the cheek.

"Thank you for such a fun day Naruto-kun, goodnight," Rukia said before rushing past him, headed for the girls dorms, leaving a stunned Naruto standing there.

"Y-You're welcome,"

* * *

Next will be another time skip to about the time Rukia is being brought back to Soul Society. I also plan to reveal his Zanpakuto then and the idea I have for it has never been done before (As far as I know). So review, give ideas, PM me if you have any questions, and paring ideas still welcome.


	4. Chapter 4

It had been roughly one-hundred years since Naruto had graduated from the Spiritual Arts Academy and chosen by a squad. Naruto had been at the top of his class in all subjects and although he didn't like violence, he has still received a request to join the Eleventh Division. Naruto, of course, turned down the request and instead requested to be placed in the Fourth Division. Needless to say, Renji wasn't surprised in the least when he hear about Naruto's choice in division. They had all known Naruto wasn't one for bloodshed and would much rather help people than slay Hollows. All of Naruto's friends also got to see, first hand, why Naruto wasn't one for killing, he was _too_ good at it. During a test in the human world, a few very large Hollows managed to slip in and began attacking. At first Renji, Momo, and, their student teacher, Hisagi had been cornered by at least twenty powerful Hollows.

That was when a sudden overwhelming despair flooded the area but it wasn't coming from them or the Hollows. No, standing on one of the roofs was Uzumaki Naruto and he had his blade drawn, for the first time any of them had ever seen. What was strange was the fact that when Naruto first got his Zanpakuto it was a regular Katana but now it looked different. While still in its sealed form, the blade was reversed so that the sharp end was on the inside and it was dull on the curved side. For some reason, after seeing the look in Naruto's eyes, Renji could tell that the Zanpakuto matched Naruto's personality. Whenever Naruto fought, he had always made sure to never aim for a spot that could potentially kill and he had always kept the part of him, willing to kill, locked away. Then, when the Hollows saw he was the much larger threat, Naruto released his Shikai for the first time. Ever since then Naruto hasn't released even a hint of his power.

Speaking of Naruto, he had kept his word and had grown up to fit the scarf Rukia had given him. Naruto now stood at about the same height as Renji himself and was now a full-grown man, instead of a skinny little kid. True, Naruto had retained his rather thin form but his body held power that was almost deceptive and he had only improved since his early years. Naruto now wore a traditional Shinigami kimono but he still had his red scarf with him at all times. Naruto also kept his Zanpakuto strapped to his left side and had replaced the original black sheath with a dark blue one. He had also allowed his hair to group out almost all the way down to his waist, although it somehow retained its spikyness.

"Uzumaki-kun would you please come and assist me in healing Madarame-san?" asked as rather soft spoken, not to mention beautiful, woman who was helping the Eleventh Division member onto one of the beds.

"Sure Unohana-taichou," was Naruto response as he set down his clipboard and walked into the room that Ikkaku would be occupying for the next several hours.

Retsu Unohana was the famous, not to mention scary, taichou of the Fourth Division and was the current teacher of one Uzumaki Naruto. Unohana has the appearance of a slender and very youthful woman with blue eyes and black hair. She wears the standard Shinigami captain uniform apart from using an obi instead of the normal sash. Her hair is long and is always worn as a large braid down the front of her body. Unohana is a very gentle woman but Naruto knows better than to get on her bad side, she can scare _anyone_ with that overly nice smile.

"Training again Ikkaku-dono?" Naruto asked as he began to heal a rather nasty cut one Ikkaku's right shoulder.

"Zaraki-taichou decided he wanted to spar the entire division all at once, it was awesome!" Ikkaku said, apparently still on his battle high, only for a chill to crawl its way up his spine.

"Please hold still Madarame-san, it would be unfortunate for your injuries to worsen and make our work _much_ harder," said Unohana using _that_ smile, to which Ikkaku slowly gulped and nodded with a wide-eyed expression.

"Unohana-taichou, it seems the muscles in his arm have been severely damaged by Zaraki-taichou and I don't believe I have enough experience to heal them myself," said Naruto as he stepped aside to allow Unohana to take a look.

Naruto marveled at how precise Unohana's gaze was and had always admired how she could spot the smallest of things with only one glance. Normally that only applies to warriors or assassins but Unohana seemed to do it almost ten times as well. Not to mention that he control was legendary and that she was the best healer in all of Soul Society. She really was something else.

"Ah good catch Uzumaki-kun, it seems that a small piece of Zaraki-taichou's blade had chipped off when he cut. If this wound had been healed then it could have caused more problems for Madarame-san in the future," said Unohana, to which Naruto smiled brightly.

"Can we please hurry up, I could be training right now!" Ikkaku complained, only to wince when Unohana roughly shoved a pair of tweezers into the wound.

"Now, now _Madarame-san_ you can't strain yourself," the scary Taichou said before slowly pulling out the metal shard, which allowed Naruto to properly heal the wound.

"Y-Yes mam," was Ikkaku's response, while Naruto tried not to laugh at the battle hardened Shinigami shaking in fear of Unohana.

"Good, now Uzumaki-kun I believe you can finish healing him from here. Please inform me when you are finished, there is something I wish to speak to you about," said Unoahan before leaving, not even giving Naruto a chance to reply.

"You sure you wouldn't rather be in the Eleventh Division? Not even Zaraki-taichou is _that_ scary," said Ikkaku while Naruto continued to heal the varous cuts on Ikkaku's body.

"Oh she's not that bad Ikkaku-dono, you're just not use to her is all. Although I've never been on the recieving end of her "Scary" face before," Naruto said with a kind smile.

"Then you're one lucky bastard,"

"Yes well I'm done healing you so fill free to go and get all beat up again," said Naruto and, true enough, all of Ikkaku's cuts had been healed.

"You're getting better and better at this every day you'll surpass Unohana-taichou," said Ikkaku as he stood up and examined his, now healed, wounds.

"Oh maybe i can learn her "Scary smile"," said Naruto as he took his long hair and made it go around his neck, so it looked like Unohana's hair style, while smiling a nice smile.

"Don't you dare you idiot!" Ikkaku yelled before hitting him on the head.

"Ouch, that hurt Ikkaku-dono!"

(Unohana's office)

Unohana sat quietly in her office, currently contemplating the Shinigami by the name Uzumaki Naruto. When Naruto had first come to her Division, she thought he would be much better suited for one of the other squads, seeing as he had the body and power of a fight. It had taken her by surprise when she learned he had sworn never to kill and how gentle he was when it came to almost everything. Naruto had been polite, caring, and not to mention very helpful in almost every task she had asigned to him. However, she could see something behind those bright blue eyes that unsettled her greatly. It was as if something was lurking under there that could make even the Soul King feel fear.

"You wished to speak to me Unohana-taichou?" asked Naruto as he poked his head in through the door.

"Yes, please come in and have a seat Uzumaki-kun," Unohana said while motioning to the seat in front of her desk.

"If I've done something wrong then I would like to apologize in advance," said Naruto, with a sorry expression on his face.

"No it's nothing like that but I do have a question for you. What is your relationship with one Kuchiki Rukia?" asked Unohana, while watching him for any kind of reaction.

"Rukia-dono? She and I were best friends in the academy and I've recently seen her again a few years ago. Her, Renji-dono, Momo-dono, and myself meat up once a weak to hang out like old times. I believe the last time we spoke, she said something about leaving for a mission in the human world," Naruto explained.

"Yes well I'm afraid that Kuchiki-san has gotten herself in a bit of trouble. From the information the Second Division gathered, we believe that she transferred her own Shinigami abilities to a human boy, who seemed to have a large amount of Reiryoku for a human. Yamamoto-soutaichou has ordered that she be retrieved and judged for breaking our laws. I had hoped that you could go, with Abarai-san, to retrieve her peacefully," Unohana explained while Naruto's facial features went from normal to complete surprise.

"How harsh will they be Unohana-taichou?" Naruto asked, feeling really worried for the person he gave his necklace to.

"I'm not sure, considering it's such a serious crime, but I'm sure that because she is a Kuchiki, she will be given a much lighter punishment. Perhaps only a few years of none-active duty and having her powers sealed until the time is up, plus being under house arrest," said Unohana.

"Then it would be best for me to go as well. Better me than Kuchiki-taichou and I've never really been to the human world, other than in the Academy," said Naruto as he stood up and bowed to his Taichou.

"Good luck Uzumaki-kun," were Unohana's last word before Naruto walked out of her office and mentally prepared himself for what was about to happen.

(Senkaimon courtyard)

"Renji-dono it's good to see you again," Naruto said, greeting one of his best friends.

"Yea but I just with it was at our weekly hang out instead of bringing Rukia-chan back to be punished," said Renji as he stared at the massive gate, which was being prepared for their departure by the Kido Corps.

"I'm sure they'll go light on her, besides she's been gone for a while now and it's going to be nice seeing her again," said Naruto, trying to lift the depressing atmosphere.

"Yea i guess you're right but what are we going to do about this guy she gave her powers to? I mean we were just ordered to bring her back but what if he tries to stop us or something?" asked Renji, who glanced over at his blond friend.

"We'll deal with that when the time comes and hopefully this person will understand so things can go smoothly."

"You are way to optimistic," said Renji with a small grin.

"I have to be, with Unohana-taichou," was Naruto's response just before the Senkaimon flared to life and they were signaled to enter.

"You ready Renji-dono?"

"Yea, lets get this over with."

(Human world: Night)

"Wow the human world sure has changed in the last one-hundred years. There's such a nasty smell in the air," Naruto complained, only for Renji to slap himself in the face.

"We're standing next to a dumpster you baka!" Renji yelled.

"Oh... I knew that," Renji smack himself again.

"Let's just go find Rukia," said Renji as he lowered a vizer down over his eyes to track Rukia's leaking reiatsu.

"You still have to use one of those Renji-dono? You must still be horible at controling your power enough to feel out her energy," Naruto commending.

"Oh shut up!" Renji shouted back, both of them unaware of a strange black cat watching them with a confused look on its face.

Several minutes passed before Renji's little toy finally found Rukia and she seemed to be running to a secluted part of the town. What, did she think there was going to be a fight of epic proportion that would destroy half the town? Ok with Renji that's a posibility. Now both Shinigami watched their long time friend run through the park, leading them farther from the city area.

"Yo Rukia-dono!" Naruto called out, actually making Rukia trip and fall on her face.

"Ouch," both male Shinigami said at the same time, while wincing.

Review, give ideas, and PM me if you have any questions.


	5. Chapter 5

After a rather embarrassing reunion, mainly because Rukia landed on her face and was so mad that steam was coming off her, Naruto and Renji proceeded to ready their return to the Soul Society. Well they would have, had a human, who later turned out to be a Quincy of all things, not nearly taken Naruto's head off with an arrow. At first Renji was going to fight the teen, but before he could even draw his blade, Naruto stepped forward.

"Now, now Quincy-dono, Rukia-dono is coming with us willingly, so there's no need for any hostilities," said Naruto who didn't want to get into any meaningless fights over such a simple thing.

"Kuchiki-san?" the Quincy asked, while keeping his bow trained on Naruto's forehead.

"It's alright Ishida-san; I've been expecting them for the last day or so. Have a nice night," Rukia said politely, which seemed to be enough for the Quincy, seeing as he lowered his bow before turning around and simply walking away.

"You as well, Kuchiki-san," the Quincy said before rounding the corner, feeling like he really dodged a bullet that night.

"So, how bad is it?" Rukia asked, no doubt wanting to prepare herself for any type of punishment she might receive for giving Ichigo her powers.

"Well since you're an adopted member of the Kuchiki clan then they might go easy on, if only to not have one of the great clans gunning for them around almost every corner. However, Kuchiki-taichou has been known for following the rules, to the letter, so he might just throw you to the wolves and let them rip you into pieces," said Renji, being as blunt as usual, while Rukia gained an almost hopeless look in her purple eyes.

"Don't worry Rukia-dono, I'm sure you'll be just fine and besides, you have me to look after you," Naruto said, with a cheesy grin on his face while Renji's eyes was twitching from Naruto completely ignoring him.

"You're way to optimistic Naruto-kun but thank you, none the less," said Rukia while Renji opened their portal back to the Soul Society, completely unaware of the orange haired Shinigami that would arrive only a few seconds later.

(Dangai: current time)

"Man this place gets worse and worse each time I walk through it," Naruto said, as the strange purple goo continued to slide off the walls.

"This is your first time going through," said Renji.

"I know! You would think they would make it nice for the new guy!" Naruto complained, trying to make Rukia have a more positive emotional state before reality catches up with them.

"After all these years you're still the same Naruto-kun," said Rukia while shaking her head at the blond Shinigami's antics.

"Aw, you don't like me the way I am Rukia-dono?" Naruto wined.

"Well you're not all bad i guess, after all you did give me this," said Rukia as she pulled a very familiar necklace from under her shirt to show that had still decided to keep it even after all these years.

"Wait just a moment, isn't that the same necklace you nearly killed me for taking back when we were still in the academy?" asked Renji, while Naruto gave him a nervous smile.

"Um... no," Naruto said before Renji began to chase him down the Dangai path for the next hour they were in there.

"Man does this thing ever end?" Naruto wined, while he carried a tired Rukia on his back.

"We're almost through you big baby," Renji snapped, while Naruto continued to carry the tired Rukia through the Dangai, which seemed to never end.

As they continued to walk, Naruto began to get a feeling that something very bad and unexpected was about to happen. Durring his time in the outer districts, before joining the academy, Naruto learned to follow his instincts, mainly because they had saved his life more times than he could remember. At the same time, Renji was remembering the orders he was given an hour before departing for the human world.

(Flashback)

_"Abarai Renji, do you understand your orders clearly?" asked Kuchiki Byakuya, Renji's Taichou and role model._

_"Yes Kuchiki-taichou, I'm to bring Rukia-san back to the Soul Society for execution, by any means necessary. I'm also to kill the human who stole Rukia-san's powers if he is with her at first contact," said Renji, repeating his orders to the very letter and hating what he was going to have to do next._

_"You will be assisted by someone quite familiar with both yourself and Rukia-san, I believe the records list him as Uzumaki Naruto of the Fourth Division," spoke Byakuya while Renji's eyes widened at the thought of Naruto helping bring Rukia to her death._

_"T-That doesn't sound like Naruto-san, I would have never expected him to willingly bring Rukia-san to her death," said Renji but Byakuya just shook his head._

_"Uzumaki-san is unaware of Rukia-san's execution but we believe that having to close friends there will make the process of her return run much smoother than if another were to go. You are not to inform Uzumaki-san or Rukia-san of your orders and to do so would bring great punishment down on the three of you. You are dismissed," said Byakuya, not even letting Renji speak again, while waving him away._

_The moment Renji exited the office of Kuchiki Byakuya; he slammed his fist into the wooden wall, making it crack. The people he had sworn to obey had just ordered him to deliver Rukia to her death and use Naruto to do it. However, he swore to kill that damn human who made this all happen, then maybe they would settle for something else than execution. Then maybe, over time, things could return to the way they were meant to be._

(End small Flashback)

"Hey Renji-dono, are you alright?" asked Naruto, who had noticed Renji space out for a moment as if he was remembering something important.

"It's nothing, just hoping everything goes over smoothly so we can get back to the way things were," said Renji but Naruto wasn't convinced.

"What's really bothering you Renji-dono, is there something you're not telling us?" asked Naruto, making Renji grow slightly more nervous but he quickly covered it up with irritation.

"I said no dammit!" Renji yelled, actually startling both Naruto and Rukia.

"No need to yell at us Renji-san," said Rukia who had finally rested enough for Naruto to place her back down, mainly so he would be able to rest from carrying her.

"Well when I say nothing's wrong, then nothing's wrong!" Renji yelled, just before the end to the Dangai appeared, showing they had finally made it across to the Soul Society.

Naruto paused momentarily, feeling as if something was wrong on the other side, he felt a large amount of negative emotions flowing through the gate and into the Dangai. What could be so wrong that so much negativity was being sent their way, no that wasn't right. All this was being directed at only one of them but, for some reason, he couldn't figure out who.

"Well let's get this over with," said Rukia as she stepped through the gate to Soul Society, just moments before Naruto was going to warn her not to.

The moment all three of them stepped through the glowing gate, they were greeted by several armed Shinigami and Kuchiki Byakuya himself. It was at this moment Naruto finally realized what had happened, or better yet, what they had planned to happen. They had used him, knowing how trusting Rukia was of him, to bring her back without much of a fight. The only way they could have now of such a thing was if one of his friends had told them but who?

"Renji-dono, please tell me you didn't," said Naruto but Renji's ashamed look was all the proof he needed.

"Take Rukia-san away," Byakuya ordered, his tone matching his emotionless eyes.

"I'm sorry Naruto-san, I was under orders," said Renji as the large group of Shinigami quickly surrounded Rukia and began to escort her away, the entire time Naruto could hear Rukia calling his name.

"I'm sorry Naruto-san, I was under orders," said Renji, feeling even more ashamed for using his friend.

"You bastard, you practically just threw her to the wolves and worse, you used me to do it," Naruto hissed, showing the first signs of anger he had ever shown in years.

"I was under _orders_, I know you don't have to do much of that in the Fourth Division but the rest of us do!" Renji snapped, turning to face Naruto only to be met by a glare from the blond Shinigami.

"_Orders_ let me tell you something about _orders_ Renji-_san_. Those who disobey orders are considered trash. However, those who abandon their friends and family are _less_ than trash," said Naruto before he used Shunpo to quickly leave the area, before he broke his vow never to kill.

Naruto appeared back at the fourth Division, knowing that this was the only place he would be allowed to think clearly. Well normally, that would be the case but it appears that his Taichou had been expecting his return and was waiting for him just by the door. She didn't have the sweet smile on her face or that happy aura, which she always seemed to have even in the worst situations.

"I take it that you've discovered the truth behind the request for you to retrieve Kuchiki-chan," said Unohana, while Naruto just gave her a blank stare.

"Yes, Unohana-taichou, I have. Did you know about it?" asked Naruto, his eyes level with his Taichou's.

"I was informed after your departure. I would have known had I attended the Taichou meeting two days ago however, there were other matters that needed my attention," Unohana explained, knowing the look in Naruto's eye wasn't one she had ever seen before.

"Would you have told me what they were planning, if you knew?" he asked, his tone even and devoid of its usual happiness.

"…No…" and with that, Naruto ghosted past her and into the hospital.

"I'm so sorry," she whispered, feeling regret for the first time in many years.

For the first time, in hundreds of years, Naruto found himself not being able to control his anger. Before, he had always been able to keep a calm and cool head, often even when others around him were letting their tempers flare randomly. When he was young, and lived out beyond the farthest district of the Rukongai, Naruto had been an angry and aggressive fighter. It's not common knowledge but there had still been a rebellion, against the Seireitei and their domination over all of Soul Society, and Naruto had been a part of it. Back then, he was a merciless killer who slaughtered man Shinigami using only his hands and, sometimes, their own Zanpakuto. He often used his speed and tremendous power to decimate his opponents but all that changed when he met his first Taichou. This woman was cold, stealthy, and willing to sacrifice anything to complete her mission. This woman was the Taichou of the Second Division and the only person to nearly kill Naruto in battle. He had made it a point to avoid her, lest she figure out whom he really is.

Now Naruto sat in his own personal quarters, dusting off his old armor from when he was a murderer. The armor had always been much too big for him but now it appeared to be an almost perfect fit. Was it destiny that this blood soaked armor now fit when someone he cared about was going to be executed, was this a sign that his old self needed to come back?

"What should I do?" Naruto asked himself, while he imagined himself back in that damn armor and knew what it would mean if he ever did put it back on.

"You could help us save her," a deep male voice said, slightly startling the blond Shinigami.

Apparently, cats could now talk because here in front of him was a talking black cat.

"And who is "us"?" asked Naruto, figuring he finally snapped and was now seeing things.

"In a few days there is going to be a group coming to the Soul Society, if you want to save Rukia-san then you'll need their help," the cat spoke, now having Naruto's full attention compared to just a few seconds ago.

"How can you trust me?" asked Naruto, to which the strange cat gave its version of a grin.

"Rukia-san often talked about you and how much she cared for you. I may be wrong and just ruined any chance of saving her but I have a feeling you'll pull through for us," the cat said, while Naruto lowered his head slightly with a frustrated look on his face.

"If I do this then I'll have to kill again, I made a vow to never kill again and by taking part in this, I will be breaking that vow," said Naruto, before he suddenly felt a human, female, hand on his shoulder.

Standing before him now was no longer a black cat but a familiar ex-Taichou, who was also completely naked. If it were any other time then he would have had some sort of reaction however, the understanding look in her eyes drew more attention than her exposed body.

"Ask yourself, what would you sacrifice to save her?"

"Anything," was Naruto's response.

"Then I need you to find the house when Rukia-san's first mentor lives," said the woman, making Naruto now raise an eyebrow.

"He left his Shinigami duties behind many years ago," said Naruto.

"Trust us like I've trusted you," said the woman before she seemed to just vanish into thin air, leaving Naruto with a new look in his eyes, a look that almost made him appear to be a different person.

"Looks like we get to meet again, Shiba Kaien"

* * *

Ok so it's been a few weeks since I last updated this story and I have to say, I feel like the beginning of it was a little rushed. However, I believe the reason it was like that was because there was no epic battle, mainly because Rukia went along willingly. So Review, give ideas, PM me if you have any questions, and the paring is still open.


	6. Chapter 6

How many times had he ever truly released his Zanpakuto? It could not have been more than twice, both being defining moments of his life as a Shinigami. The first time, he believed, what one that trip to the human world when countless Hollows appeared and began to kill his classmates. That time had been filled with enough desperation for Naruto to hear his Zanpakuto's name only once. However, after that moment, he could no longer hear its name. The second time had been out of anger, anger towards a Hollow for causing someone pain.

This was also the very first time he met the man named Shiba Kaien, and he would find a new friend in this black-haired man. For that day was the first and last time he ever saw Kaien but it wasn't for the reason most people would think. It was not because his wife, Shiba Miyako, was presumed dead at the hands of a Hollow. No, it was because his wife was _alive_ by the courage of Uzumaki Naruto. When the strange Hollow possessed Miyako's body, and tried to kill other Shinigami, Kaien believed his wife to be gone and for only a mockery of her remain. This was the night that Shiba Miyako _lived_.

(Flashback)

"_Honestly Uzumaki-kun it's no problem, my group should be able to handle a single Hollow," said, a very much alive, Shiba Miyako as a certain blond, Fourth Division, Shinigami walked next to her._

"_Well Unohana-taichou decided it would be best to have, at least, one member of our division on every patrol. Besides, I need some more field work and Ukitake-taichou offered to let me go on tonight's patrol," Naruto explained while scratching the back of his head, reminding Miyako of what Kaien does when he's nervous._

"_Well I suppose that the Fourth Division members don't get that much field time but just hang back if we find the Hollow, I don't want anyone getting hurt too bad tonight," Miyako said, showing her "mother-like" personality._

"_Thank you, Shiba-dono," said Naruto, giving her a small bow._

"_No, call me Miyako, Kukaku-chan is "Shiba-dono"," said Miyako, to which Naruto continued to scratch the back of her head._

"_Alright then, Miyako-dono," Naruto said, while Miyako resisted the urge to slap her forehead._

"_Well I guess that's better than nothing," she said as they walked off the streets and into the forest, planning to meet up with the rest of their group._

_Personally, Naruto was looking forward to his time out in the field; he hadn't been out since the incident in the human world. Sadly, he wasn't able to advance to any higher positions, mainly because he hadn't been able to communicate with his Zanpakuto since his trip to the human world. For some reason, every time he tried to enter his inner world, he was suddenly blocked by a wave of pain. He didn't really even understand why his Zanpakuto didn't want to speak with him but for a healer, he guessed, it didn't really matter. He saw what just the power of his Zanpakuto could do and knew that it wasn't meant for healing people. His Zanpakuto gave him the power to kill people, in more ways than he could ever even imagine. In fact, just his normal reiatsu was dark enough to make others feel an intense amount of fear towards him._

"_Are you alright Uzumaki-kun?" Miyako asked, clearly catching his look of concentration, just as they met up with the rest of the six-man squad._

"_Yea, I just feel like I'm forgetting something, is all," was Naruto's response, but in reality he felt as if someone was watching them._

"_Well keep on alert when we begin our patrol, I don't want any Hollows sneaking up on us," Miyako said just before something lunged out of the trees and dove right towards her._

_Naruto cursed, he wouldn't be able to push Miyako out of the way fast enough. He watched as a strange looking Hollow seemed to make a single scratch on her before, somehow, climbing inside of her body. All that remained of the Hollow's original form was a white husk, the rest was now inside the wife of Shiba Kaien. All was still, most not knowing what happened, and then the possessed body sprang into action. If it wasn't for his past experience then Miyako's possessed body would have been successful in severing his head. Luckily, he managed to duck but that still didn't stop her from slaughtering the rest of the squad._

"_**What's wrong boy, afraid to fight a woman?**__" a deep voice said, clearly the Hollow, not Miyako._

"_What have you done to Miyako-dono?" Naruto asked as he continued to weave in and out of every sword slash thrown at him._

"_**Isn't in obvious, I bonded with her soul and am currently eating her from the inside out. Sadly she doesn't have all that much power but I think you'll be enough to sate my thirst, for a while!**__" the creature said, trying to cut Naruto so that, once it's done with Miyako, it could jump inside Naruto's body._

"_A Hollow that can climb inside a Shinigami, what kind of mad man would create a creature such as you?" Naruto asked, more to himself than the possessed Miyako, before he drew his sword to block a downward slash._

"_**Oh I've never seen a Shinigami with a sword like yours before. You must be special to have a Zanpakuto with a reversed blade,**__" it spoke as it pressed down more on the, slightly shorter, Shinigami._

"_There's nothing special about it, my will to never kill simply manifested in my Zanpakuto," Naruto stated, causing the creature before him to laugh darkly._

"_**A Shinigami that doesn't kill, what a joke!**__" the possessed body laughed, as Naruto jumped back to avoid a kick to the ribs._

"_Don't mistake my promise never to kill for a weakness. Because you possessed Miyako-dono's body, I have no fear of causing you pain!" Naruto yelled as he shifted his stance, lowering his body dramatically, before lunging forward._

"_**Die, Shinigami trash!**__" the Zanpakuto, once belonging to Miyako, swung down with the intent of cutting Naruto in half._

_Just as the Zanpakuto touched a single, blond, stand of hair, Naruto seemed to vanish. He then appeared behind the creature and slammed his reverse blade right into its shoulder. With a single swing, Naruto managed to completely dislocate the shoulder and nearly break it for good. However, it seemed that the Hollow didn't feel pain while possessing so it was able to turn around and cut Naruto right across the cheek. Naruto swore, his skills with a blade weren't as good as when he wasn't a Shinigami. Then again, he wasn't aiming to kill but merely incapacitate, until backup could arrive._

"_**You better kill me now Shinigami, if you don't then once I'm done with this body I'll move on to yours!**__" the Hollow laughed, already almost done with its little snack._

"_Stop talking," Naruto said, his bangs overshadowing his eyes._

"_**Oh, am I getting to you?**__" the Hollow taunted, only to suddenly feel fear consume his entire being._

"_Every time you open your mouth… makes me want to break my promise and cut you down," Naruto said as yellow and black Reiatsu began to flow off him in small pieces._

"_**W-What the hell?**__" the Hollow asked, not being able to control his host's body or even continue eating her from the inside._

"_Sorry, when I'm upset my control slips on my power and some tends to come out," said Naruto before everything suddenly went black._

_(Naruto's inner world)_

_When Naruto opened his eyes, he found himself in a very strange looking place. He was in a grass-covered field but right in the middle of the field, there was a massive tree about twice as high as the Soul Society Execution Grounds. The tree itself seemed to be facing up towards a full moon, which was strange because the sun was also out, and on top of the tree was a large flower of some kind. Knowing where he was, Naruto began to look around for where his Zanpakuto spirit might be but, no matter where he looked, he couldn't find any trace of it. Where could it possibly be?_

"It's surprising how many times people miss what's right in front of them, eh Naruto-san?_" a youthful voice asked from somewhere above the blond Shinigami._

_Looking up, Naruto was taken by surprise when he saw the figure of a man standing on the side of the tree as if it were solid ground. Not being able to completely see the man, Naruto made an effort to Shunpo up to him only to find that he couldn't. It was as if his Shinigami abilities wouldn't work in his own inner world, which was almost unheard of. Seeing the look on Naruto's face, the strange man chuckled at the Shinigami below him._

"I'm not surprised that you don't realize why your own abilities won't work in here. In one's inner world they are reduced to what they truly are, this means that for a normal Shinigami they would be able to use their abilities. However, Naruto-san, you were not originally a Shinigami and as such cannot use their abilities in here," _the man spoke, his voice somehow covering the great distance between them._

"_What… I originally was?" Naruto asked, looking down at the palm of his hand as if he would somehow find the answer there._

"If you wish to use me then first you must rediscover how to use your original abilities,_" the man said, never moving from his place on the massive tree/flower._

"_I don't know how to even begin," Naruto said but the man just smiled._

"_Then trust your instincts, now come to me Naruto and claim your power."_

_(Our side world)_

"_It appears your day just became worse, Hollow-dono. I've just found out the name of my Zanpakuto," said Naruto, as the possessed Miyako leapt away from the blond Shinigami._

"_**So what, I've killed hundreds of Shinigami!**__" it yelled but Naruto just smiled._

"_Sorry if my reiatsu scares you again, this is my first time releasing my Zanpakuto so I'm afraid there will be a small show," said Naruto, his voice no longer having the touch of anger it had only a few seconds ago._

"_**W-What?**__" it asked but it's only answer was even more fear than before._

"_Rise Shinju."_

_Every being in all of the Seireitei could feel the sudden large amount of reiatsu sweep over them. None of them knew who the reiatsu could possibly even belong to but it had a darkness to it. Most of the Shinigami felt a sudden fear grip their hearts as the dense reiatsu swallowed them, it felt as if it was a mix of reiatsu and something else, something darker but not quite a Hollow. Whoever this person was, they clearly built their power on the bodies of _millions_. At the core, completely covered in white and black reiatsu, was Naruto. When the reiatsu faded, Naruto stood there without any sword on his person but what he did have was a yellow high-collar haori that seemed to be made out of his reiatsu itself._

"_Sorry that took so long but don't worry, it will all be over soon," said Naruto as he held out his right hand and his reiatsu haori seemed to flow into his hand, before turning into a blade made of pure reiatsu._

"_**What are you?**__" the Hollow asked, focusing more on surviving than finishing his meal._

"_Hollow-dono please leave Miyako-dono's body," Naruto interrupted, his voice steady and almost casual._

"_**You think that just because of a fancy light show, you can just order me around!? I will destroy you!**__" the Hollow yelled before using Miyako's body to lunge at the calm Shinigami._

"_I'm sorry if this hurts Miyako-dono," said Naruto before he ducked under the Hollow's sword swing and allowed his reiatsu blade to slice right through her mid-section._

_Now, instead of only one being, the remains of the hollow lay on the ground while a passed out Miyako lay only a few feet away. Naruto stood there, knowing that Ukitake-taichou, Rukia, and Shiba Kaien were heading towards their location, no doubt sensing the monstrous reiatsu he released just a minute ago. So, without much difficulty, Naruto sealed his Zanpakuto before taking the sharp edge and giving himself a long shallow cut across the chest. Better, they not know it was he who had released such a high amount of reiatsu._

"_Better start healing Miyako-dono," Naruto said to himself, knowing full well that the three Shinigami were only a few seconds away._

"_Miyako-chan!" yelled Shiba Kaien, being the first to appear in the clearing, only to find a blond Shinigami kneeling next to his wife._

"_It's alright, she's only knocked out," said Naruto playing the part of an injured Shinigami rather well, despite his actual self-inflicted injury._

"_Naruto-kun!" Rukia yelled as she and Ukitake entered the clearing, with the latter looking slightly winded._

"_Rukia-san, you know him?" asked Kaien as he knelt on the other side of his wife, while Naruto continued to try and repair the damage the hollow did to her insides._

"_He's a member of the Fourth Division and a personal friend," Rukia said before she noticed Naruto's bleeding chest._

"_You're hurt!" she exclaimed, kneeling down next to him to examine the self-inflicted injury._

"_Yea, the Hollow tried to do something to me but then it just suddenly let out a lot of reiatsu and died over there," said Naruto, who had managed to stabilize Miyako at least enough to get her to the Fourth Division._

"_So that's what we felt earlier however, we should get Miyako-chan to your own Taichou," said Ukitake._

"_Thank you Naruto-san, for holding that Hollow off long enough and for saving my wife," said Kaien as he picked up his wife, while Rukia helped Naruto stand up._

"_You're welcome"_

(End Flashback)

"Can I really use your power again, would it be right to use you against my fellow Shinigami?" Naruto asked his Zanpakuto, not expecting an answer.

"_What would you sacrifice to save her?_" was his Zanpakuto's response, sounding rather similar to the question that woman asked him.

"Anything, I would sacrifice _anything," he said then he put on his armor and became what he once was._

(Next morning)

Naruto stood just outside of the west gate, knowing full well that this was the best spot for anyone to enter Soul Society without using the normal gate. The bubble that surrounded the center conflicted with the energy outside it. This left the perfect little rift for someone, who knew what they were doing, to enter in through the Dangai and get into Soul Society. So Naruto stood there, glad that his multi-plated armor now fit (Hashirama's armor), and was pleased that there might be a chance to save Rukia. Also, to help re-assume his old self, he took out the band which kept his hair in a ponytail but kept the scarf Rukia gave him, if just to remember not to go on a rampage.

Yes, his old self had been one to seek out death if only to sate his own thirst for blood.

(Flashback)

_Our past the districts of the Soul Society, there was a battle raging. One side was a group that wanted to have equality in the Soul Society, the other being the Shinigami. Both armies had been fighting for weeks, some dying from fighting for too long but most of the Shinigami died at the hands of a single person. A child only in form and a monster on the battlefield. This child was Uzumaki Naruto and he had been fighting since the battle first began. Countless Shinigami had tried to kill this child but they died before the thought could fully form in their head._

"_More," Naruto whispered, as he snapped a Shinigami's neck._

"_There's not enough blood," he used a man as a human shield while his fellow Shinigami cut him down._

"_I need more!" Naruto took the dead man's fallen blade and began to use that to kill._

_Almost all of Naruto's small body was covered in human blood, his hair stained with it, his armored recolored by it, and his hands burned with it. His eyes showed a bloodlust that only few could ever have and his body held more power than a boy should have. A single punch, from him, was strong enough to shatter a man's heart and send him flying several yards away. He would leap far and wide, each time making the earth jut up from his landing, and continue to kill. None had given him the challenge he wanted. Then it happened, a kick stronger than he had ever felt connected with his armored chest. Naruto heart his armor groan under the strength of the kick, just before he was sent flying back._

"_What… the hell?" Naruto groaned, as he stood back up to see who had managed to actually cause him pain._

"_Hm, I'm impressed you're still standing," said the woman who had sent Naruto flying._

"_What's your name?" Naruto asked, standing back up to his full height, while dusting off his armor as if nothing had happened._

"_Shihoin Yoruichi, Taichou of the Second Division, and commander of the Onmitsukido," said Yoruichi, her Taichou haori now discarded to reveal her non-modest uniform._

"_Shihoin Yoruichi, I've heard of your skill and I hope your strong enough," said Naruto, an almost to calm of a look on his face._

"_Strong enough?" she asked before suddenly the world around her began to move in the wrong direction, no that's not right, she was being sent backwards!_

_That's when the pain hit, it hit like a mountain slamming into her, and she found Naruto's fist buried in her stomach. The strength that this boy held was almost unreal, in fact one of her lower ribs might have just cracked slightly. Naruto didn't stop there, punch after punch connected with her torso and all of them had the strength of the first. When he did stop, Yoruichi felt as if she had just been hit by Yamamoto. Naruto looked down at her body, wondering if he had thought to highly of her power, before a sandal covered foot connected with his face. The force of the kick nearly broke his nose but it didn't stop his body from flying into the sky, followed shortly by Yoruichi appearing above him._

"_Take this!" she yelled, delivering an even stronger ax-kick to his back, sending him hurdling back down to earth._

_Believing the boy had been dealt with, Yoruichi prepared to find a medic, get healed, and finish this pointless war just like she was ordered. However, when she landed, she saw Naruto climbing out of a crater with a noticeable limp in his step. She didn't understand, that kick alone should have shattered his spine into pieces and, if that didn't kill him, being blown back down to earth should have finished him off. Yet, standing before her, was the still breathing Naruto who had a large grin on his face._

"_Finally someone I can test myself against. Come, TRY AND KILL ME, SHIHOIN YORUICHI!" Naruto roared, obvious glee in his blue eyes as he lunged at the Taichou again but this time she was ready._

_When Naruto's fist connected with Yoruichi's arm they could both feel their very bones rattle from the power. Even the shockwave, caused by the unstoppable force meeting the immovable object, was strong enough to send multiple people flying away from them. Then, with speed, only the two fighters could track, they engaged in a fury of attacks. Each one strong enough to kill a normal person but, to them, it was weak enough for them to keep going. Yoruichi managed to get the upper hand and tripped Naruto, making him fall flat on his back, before she got over him and unleashed devastating punches. The power behind each punch was enough to cause the ground to explode. Soon, an entire miles worth of land was completely uprooted and standing at the center was Yoruichi kneeling over Naruto. _

'_That attack was my strongest to date, there's no way he survive that,' Yoruichi thought as she sat on a piece of rubble, wincing at her own injuries._

'_This kid is insane,' she though 'His hits were strong enough to almost shatter my bones.'_

_So there she sat, waiting for the boy's body to fade away and enter the reincarnation cycle all over again. Then, after twenty minutes of waiting, she realized that he wasn't dead yet and was just knocked out! This small child had received her post devastating, not including Ban-Kai, attack and was still alive! So she painfully picked herself up, straddled the boy's lap, and pulled out one of her many hidden knives. This boy couldn't be allowed to live, if he was this strong now then he would be a threat to the other Taichous in the future and that she couldn't allow. She lowered her blade to his neck, ignoring the sounds of battle that occupied the distant areas, but suddenly stopped. The boy's eyes were now open and he was staring right into her gold ones, she hesitated and it cost her. She was suddenly flipped over, winching as her cracked ribs moved ever so slightly, and found her own blade at her own throat. She prepared for death but it never came, because he hesitated._

"_Why do you fight?" he suddenly asked, making the experienced Taichou's eyes widen._

"_W-What?" she asked, wondering while this young murderer stopped to ask her such a question._

"_What's your reason for fighting?" Naruto asked again, all the bloodlust gone from his blue eyes._

"_I fight because I'm told to, to defend the Soul Society," was her response, wondering if he was going to kill her now that she got her answer._

_Then Naruto got off of her and dropped her knife on the ground, wincing himself when he stood up to fast and disturbed his injured back. Then he looked down at this dark skinned Taichou, his young eyes looking for something in her own._

"_Those are just orders, what is the will that gave you such power?" he asked, resting up against the same piece of rubble she had only moments ago._

"_My friends, my family, and knowing that I can protect people," was her new response, believing she knew what he really wanted to know._

"_You're the strongest person I've ever fought. Go and let your wounds heal, then come and lets do this again, or you could stab me in the back as I walk away," said Naruto just as some rebels made it over to their location, with the intent of killing Yoruichi._

"_Die Shinigami!" one of them yelled, his sword about to cut the injured Taichou down._

"_Massyoshi!" Naruto exclaimed, his power suddenly skyrocketing making the earth tremble "Lower your sword."_

_Needless to say, the man lowed his sword and none dared to approach the female Taichou._

"_Tell the Shinigami that there has been enough fighting this week, let them help this Taichou, we will fight another day," said Naruto as he continued to limp away, not caring about the looks of shock he was receiving from his subordinates._

"_Wait, what's your name?" Yoruichi asked, as she to stood up._

"_Uzumaki Naruto."_

(End flashback)

'I wonder how it will be, Shihoin Yoruichi, to fight with you instead of against you,' Naruto thought, just as a portal opened and the operation, to save Rukia, began.

"I see you've decided to show up, Naruto-kun," said the familiar female voice of Yoruichi.

"Indeed."

* * *

Well this chapter is almost twice, maybe a little less, as long as a normal chapter and, to be honest, I didn't even look at the word count till I reached 3,000. I don't know when I'll write a chapter as long as this, or longer, again but hopefully you all enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it. So review, give any ideas you may have, PM me if you have any question, and the pairing is still open for vote.


	7. Chapter 7

"_There is a difference between you and me. We both looked into the abyss, but when it looked back as us, you blinked."_

* * *

Naruto couldn't believe he had agreed to accept this groups help, in saving Rukia from her death and invading the most dangerous place in all three dimensions. Their group consisted of an ex-murderer, an ex-Taichou, a teenage Quincy, an all too innocent girl, a _very_ tall teenager, and a wannabe Shinigami with an oversized Zanpakuto. This was the group of people who were going to challenge the strongest people, of this time period, and defeat them. Yea, they'd be lucky to last a minute against someone like Kenpachi or even Jushiro. However, here Naruto sat in the Shiba House with Kaien across from him and his sister, Shiba Kukaku, sitting next to him.

"Well, Yoruichi-chan, I'm guessing you need my help with something?" Kukaku asked, while downing her cup of sake not giving a crap if she got drunk or not.

"What, I can't come and visit an old friend?" Yoruichi asked a grin on her face while she also drank her own cup of sake.

"Oh yea, it's just you brought half an army with you," Kukaku pointed out.

"Kukaku-nee, I hardly doubt this is considered as an army," said Kaien, but his sister just gave him a dry look.

"We have a guy in _armor_ sitting at our table, how would you explain that?" asked Kukaku, completely missing the fact that Naruto's right eye was twitching in annoyance.

"What, you don't recognize Naruto-san?" asked Kaien, while his sister seemed to look between her brother and the blond Shinigami.

"This guy is that little shrimp you told me about?" asked Kukaku and, finally, Naruto seemed to have enough of being talked about.

"And this but be the rude sibling you told me about, Kaien-dono," Naruto hissed, leaving a strained silence in the room.

"Care to repeat that, _shrimp_?" Kukaku asked a dangerous tone in her voice while her eyes seemed to glow with anger.

"Kaien-dono never told me you were deaf as well, would you like me to speak louder?" asked Naruto, his voice now calm when compared to Kukaku's growing anger.

"Ok, maybe we you two should calm down, the last thing we need is for there to be a sudden crater in the ground," Yoruichi suggested, knowing how Kukaku got when she was royally pissed off.

"Oh I'm completely calm; it's this jackass that needs to calm down!" Kukaku yelled, with reiatsu created fire around her fist.

"I'm not the one that has steam coming out of their ears," commented Naruto and that's when Kukaku snapped.

There was a sudden explosion and almost everyone in the room was soon out of the room. Even Kaien was hiding in the hallway, along with everyone else, while peering in to see if there was anything left of the blond Shinigami. What they saw was Kukaku standing on the wooden table, with her good arm outstretched, and with her fist being held by Naruto's open hand. Naruto had not only managed to catch her punch but also, somehow, shield himself from the explosion that had just consumed the room. Clearly, Kukaku hadn't been expecting someone to actually be able to catch her punch but Naruto seemed to know, if the calm look on his face was anything to go by.

"Uzumaki Naruto, pleasure to meet you," said Naruto, all forms of hostility gone from his voice.

"Shiba Kukaku and likewise. Sake?" Kukaku asked as she stepped down off the table and grabbed an unbroken bottle of sake.

"Yes please," was Naruto's response with a pleasant smile on his face.

'W-What the hell just happened?' was the collective thought of the other onlookers, not believing that those two went from wanting to kill each other to sharing a bottle of sake.

So, several minutes later they all sat around the slightly burned table. No it was Kukaku who sat next to Naruto while everyone else sat on the complete other end, mainly so they could jump out of the way if there was another nuclear explosion. None of them could really understand how they could go from wanting to rip each other's throats out to sharing a cup of sake, like two old friends meeting up again.

"So… how are we going to get into the Seriate now?" asked Ichigo, knowing there was no way they could get over such a massive wall.

"I'm going to shoot you guys out of a massive cannon," was Kukaku's response, needless to say everyone looked at her like she was crazy.

"Correction, we're going to destroy the barrier that surrounds the Seriate by attacking it from two different points. The main group will sneak through and find Rukia-dono while the other group draws everyone to the," Naruto explained, now drawing looks from everyone.

"Nice to know there's someone as crazy as me, around here," said Kukaku.

"And how do you plan on taking down that strong of a barrier?" asked Uryu.

"The five of you will be shot out of the cannon while I go back to the West gate. I'll be using my reiatsu to draw most of the barrier's power, that way when you guys hit the other side, the barrier won't be able to compensate," Naruto explained, while taking a small sip of his sake.

"Do you have any idea how much reiatsu you would have to exert just to weaken the barrier? Even if you had that much power, your body would be ripped to pieces from the strain," Yoruichi said but Naruto just sighed in response.

"That would be the case if I was the same as when we first met. However, since becoming a Shinigami myself, my Zanpakuto will give me the necessary control and power to do this without dying. I will also still be able to draw the attention of most the Shinigami in the area," said Naruto, only to draw a surprised look from Kaien.

"But aren't you just a healer? How could you possibly have that much power?" Kaien asked.

"Before I became a Shinigami, I was a warrior from the outer districts. I had been trained to kill Shinigami and had done so for many years. It was only after meeting Yoruichi-dono that I became something more than just a murderer," Naruto explained.

"Just how many have you killed?" asked Ichigo.

"During the last week of the rebellion, my kill count had been over one thousand Shinigami. Keep in mind that I only ever fought in four battles total so that's roughly two hundred and fifty per battle," was Naruto's response, his tone low as if he was ashamed by what he use to do.

"Damn, that's a lot of kills," said Kukaku, now taking a large drink out of the battle instead of her cup.

"That's why I became a healer instead of a combat Shinigami. I swore to never kill again and that's a promise I intend to keep."

"You're being rather open about such a dark past, any reason?" asked Kukaku.

"I'm powerful, possibly on even grounds with Yammamoto-dono, but there is still a chance we could all die in the next few days. Better to have no secrets between is, secrets often drive groups like our apart. So better you know just what I was and what I am now," Naruto clarified, his eyes with unwavering determination, while he reached inside his armor and pulled out the scarf Rukia gave him all those years ago.

"So you're the guy that gave Rukia-san her necklace," said Chad, speaking for the first time since Naruto had met him.

"Yea and she gave me this, I've always kept it will me no matter where I go."

"Naruto-san," Yoruichi began, only for Naruto to suddenly stand up and walk to the door.

"I need to get some fresh air," was all he said before he was out the door and up the stairs.

Naruto was never one for long conversations with people he had just met, he would much rather spend time with people he actually knew. Yoruichi, he only knew from his time on the battlefield and, even then, he was too busy focusing on the fight than talking with her. This Kurosaki Ichigo was a person Naruto felt he wouldn't really get along with, if only because he did things without thinking them through all the way. Orihime seemed like a nice enough person and was really the only person he felt wouldn't judge him because of his past. Ishida Uryu had a grudge against _all_ Shinigami so there was really no point in looking for a friend there. Chad was the strong, silent type so no real point. Naruto never really knew Kaien all that well, only that Rukia was hurt when he decided to stop being a Shinigami but Naruto knew he had his reasons. Finally, Kukaku was a woman of action with a love for strength and large amounts of sake; she would get along great with his old self.

"_What's bother you, Naruto-san?_" asked Shinju, his form materializing a few feet behind Naruto.

"I know what I have to do in order to save Rukia-dono but that would require me to break the promise I made to myself. I know that if I break my promise then I will never be able to return to the way I am now, I'm conflicted as to what I should do," said Naruto as he sat down on the soft grass, while Shinju stood behind him with his figure somehow covered in shadow.

"_You're no longer the murder of thousands and yet you are no longer a simple healer. You possess the strongest Zanpakuto, a Zanpakuto capable of bending the very energy of the afterlife. Yet, while you could take control and dominate all of reality, you choose to now help people that need it. I believe it's time for you to choose which life you should lead. The one of a killer that won't hesitate to butcher every last Shinigami if it means saving someone close to you or the healer who would even heal his enemy,_" Shinju said as he placed his hand on Naruto's shoulder before turning into yellow reiatsu and molding back into his wielder.

"You never did just answer a question with a simple response," Naruto whispered while looking out over the grassy plain.

Naruto fell asleep there, on that open plain, admiring the beauty of nature and know that soon Rukia would be safe. She would be safe and there was no force in existence that would stand in his way.

"If she isn't safe then there is no Shinigami, no army of warriors, nor the Soul King himself that could stand in my way. This I swear," Naruto promised just before sleep claimed him.

(Next morning)

It was an interesting feeling, to wake up in a wide-open area with almost no one around. Just miles of grass in which to explore and to train in whatever field you find yourself in. For some reason, being out in nature seemed to remind him of something that he had never seen before, well not while he was awake. Naruto dreamt of a great forest, larger than all the districts combined, and in the center was a large village. He didn't know why but, whenever he dreamt of that place, it made him feel at ease. Shinju said it was just a reoccurring dream but Naruto felt it was so much more than that. It felt like home.

"There you are, Naruto-kun," said Yoruichi, who actually managed to sneak up on him for once.

"I've been here all night, Yoruichi-dono. Have you been looking for me?" Naruto asked while standing up and dusting off his red armor.

"There's a lot riding on you and everyone else thinks you're crazy, for attempting to destroy the field around the Seriate. So are you sure you can do it or are you just crazy?" Yoruichi asked but her response came in the form of Naruto drawing his Zanpakuto.

"I take it that we will be departing soon?" asked Naruto.

"In ten minutes," Yoruichi said while Naruto held his Zanpakuto out in front of his face, so he could look into his own eyes.

"Then I better get ready to do my part," said Naruto before reiatsu erupted from his body, reaching high above the clouds while also sending a sense of despair across all of Soul Society.

'What the hell is this power!' Yoruichi thought, being almost at the core of the intense power.

"Rise Shinju," Naruto whispered and, a moment later, the crushing reiatsu vanished into thin air, leaving only Naruto standing there.

"I'll begin to weaken the barrier now," said Naruto before he vanished in a flash of yellow light.

"Just what are you?"

(Top of West Gate)

Naruto seemed to appear in a flash of light, which was clearly seen by the massing Shinigami on the other side of the wall, but that didn't seem to stop him from placing his hand on the barrier. Normally the barrier would rip someone into pieces but Naruto's, God-like, power seemed to be preventing that from happening. Naruto then began to focus all of his power directly into the barrier, having already sensed the cannon fire and the second groups approach. Much too all the other Shinigami's surprise, Naruto was pushing enough power into the barrier to make in visible to the naked eye. Then the strange cannon ball hit the top of the barrier, making it shatter like a thin piece of glass. There was now nothing to prevent them from entering the Seriate. It was also at that moment in which Naruto recognized just who his first opponents would be.

"Well I would have never guessed that Naruto-san was _him. _To think that such a nice guy could be the murder of a thousand Shinigami," said Ikkaku with the entire Eleventh Division behind him, minus their Taichou.

"You know him Ikkaku-san?" asked one of the squad members.

"Uzumaki Naruto, third seat of the Fourth Division."

"No way, there's no way someone of the Fourth Division could be that strong!" yelled another squad member but Ikkaku just rolled his eyes.

"He practically shattered the barrier around the Seriate all by himself, hell I can even feel fear creeping up my spine," said Ikkaku, as a cloud covered their area giving it a very nerve-racking feeling.

Naruto looked like some all-powerful warrior with the way he stood on top of the white walls with his arms crossed. Power practically rolled off his body in waves, because he wasn't holding it in, and when he opened his eyes they were ice cold. Then he took a single step off the white walls, almost floating to the ground, before landing in a crouched position. When he stood, his eyes bore into the Shinigami's souls and filled them with a fear the likes of which they had never felt before. That's right, the toughest squad in all of Soul Society was afraid of one single man, it would be funny if it wasn't so scary.

"Alright, let's begin"

* * *

All right, so the invasion has finally begun and I'd say Naruto put the fear of God in the other Shinigami. Ok so here is the bad news, I am going to put this story on hold until I get how I want the evasion to go, set in stone. I don't really want to make up each chapter as I go along so it will take some planning on my part. So fill free to review, give ideas, PM me if you have any questions and the pairing is still open.


	8. Chapter 8

"_War must be, while we defend our lives against a destroyer who would devour all; but I do not love the bright sword for its sharpness, nor the arrow for its swiftness, nor the warrior for his glory. I love only that which they defend."_

― _J.R.R. Tolkien_

* * *

Everyone's hearts were racing at the moment, mainly out of fear for their lives or even for the lives of their friends. The reason they felt such fear is that the murderer of over a thousand Shinigami was standing just a few yards away from them. What they didn't know was that he had been the one to heal most of their injuries, at one point or another. That's right, the once infamous killer had become nothing more than a simple medic but that only made him even more dangerous.

"Whatever you do, don't face him head on because he will just tear through you," said Ikkaku as he drew his Zanpakuto, along with the rest of the Eleventh Division.

Naruto then took a single step forward, followed by another, and soon enough he was full on sprinting at them. His main body was held forward, while his arms hung back to keep him balanced, and he was still gaining speed. Ikkaku couldn't believe it, he was finally going to fight the most infamous person in all of Soul Society and possibly even win. With that, all of the Eleventh Division gave out their own war cry before rushing forward, ready to cut Naruto down without a second thought. From another perspective, it would be suicide to charge a small army head on, if there was only one person fighting them. However, when Naruto and the army collided, Naruto's reiatsu seemed to make a small barrier that allowed him to keep going. By the time he finally stopped, Naruto was in the middle of their ranks and began his fight.

"Kill him!" one yelled, before Naruto's foot connected with the side of his face and sent the poor bastard flying into his friends.

Surprisingly, Naruto had yet to cut down a single opponent, having only beat them unto unconsciousness. Naruto used his new knowledge of the human body to avoid hitting their vital points while also hitting them hard enough to knock them out. He found it so much harder to incapacitate his opponent rather than just lop off their heads with a single swing of his sword.

"Uzumaki!" Ikkaku roared as he dove down on the blond from above, with his Zanpakuto already released and ready to kill.

"Ikkaku-dono," Naruto greeted in return as he jumped back, out of Ikkaku's reach.

"So this is why you never wanted to join the Eleventh Division eh?" asked Ikkaku as he thrust his spear forward, only for Naruto to sidestep it with relative ease.

"Please don't insult me by claiming you know my reasons for doing something. I don't really have the time to play around right now," said Naruto as he took down another five Shinigami in the time it took Ikkaku to charge him again.

"Alright, then I'll just kill you!" Ikkaku roared, believing Naruto had been distracted enough to catch him off guard.

Instead of Ikkaku's spearhead piercing Naruto's chest, the head actually broke off when it hit something solid. Everyone's eyes widened when Naruto's reiatsu actually formed a solid construct, in the shape of ribs, in order to protect Naruto from harm. Then a bone-like arm seemed to extend from the ribcage and punch Ikkaku with enough force to send him through a wall. Naruto just stood there for a moment, allowing them to adjust to the new threat, before he made his reiatsu construction even bigger. After a few seconds there was an entire humanoid construction with Naruto standing right in the center of it.

"This construct I named Susanoo," said Naruto as the giant construct formed two reiatsu blades, one in each hand.

"You, named it?" asked Ikkaku, who climbed back through the wall he had just been thrown through.

"My Zanpakuto's Shikai gives me the power to manipulate my own reiatsu into almost anything I want. Therefore, it has no names for anything I make, so I decided to create names for each one. This one is named "Susanoo" because for its literal meaning, which is "_He with the ability to help by all means_"," Naruto explained, while the other Shinigami kept trying to force their way through his Susanoo.

"Only a stupid person would explain their ability to an enemy!" yelled Ikkaku, as he to tried to force his way through the motionless monstrosity, but Naruto just frowned.

"You're wrong, I'm telling you this because you won't even have a chance to use this information against me," Naruto whispered, before his Susanoo struck with power beyond imagination.

The golden Susanoo released enough power to completely knock out all Shinigami within its area of vision and even some that were farther away. What happened was Naruto used the fear that his reiatsu seemed to invoke in people and overloaded everyone in the area. This made them all pass out from just the power of fear, even the more powerful Shinigami were rendered unconscious. Naruto then realized he was supposed to distract the Shinigami long enough for the others to find Rukia.

"Great, now I have to find someone else to fight," said Naruto, feeling rather disappointed that other Shinigami were so much weaker than him.

(First Division)

"Yamamoto-taichou," Unohana greeted.

"You know why I asked you to come here, Unohana-Taichou," said Yamamoto, while his left eye cracked open to look at the woman before him.

"I do."

"His power is much higher than we could have ever predicted and it falls to you, to either change his mind or put him down," said Yamamoto before the gentle Taichou turned around and began to walk away.

"I'm sorry Uzumaki-kun, I never thought I would have to fight you myself," Unohana whispered as she undid her braided hair, letting it flow freely, while she drew her Zanpakuto from its sheath.

"But I have to admit, the thought of fighting you really excites me. It even makes this old wound burn," said Unohana, as she touched the scar between her collarbone, but this time her tone was different.

When Unohana walked out of the First Division, she no longer had bright eyes but half lidded ones with a menacing look. Her smile was no longer happy but bloodthirsty and the way she walked was that of a killer. This was no longer the kind Unohana Retsu but the mass killer Unohana Yachiru, and she was out for blood.

(With Yoruichi's group)

To say their landing was rough was like saying pillows were soft, it was very true. About half way down, Ichigo's control slipped and they nearly got thrown into three different directions. Luckily, they managed to hit the ground first but by then the bubble was about as strong as a piece of wet paper. So they were lucking nothing was broken and that Naruto was currently drawing every Shinigami to his location. Hell, she still felt the fear that his reiatsu gave off and they were a few miles away!

"Man, I can't believe that actually worked," said Ichigo as he got up and dusted his uniform off.

"I've learned to never underestimate Naruto-san, he has a way of proving you wrong if you do," said Yoruichi while trying to figure out if there were any Shinigami in the immediate area, luckily there wasn't a single one.

"So what is the first step of the plan?" asked Uryu while he dusted off his pure white cape.

"We should try to avoid as many Shinigami as possible, let Naruto-san deal with them, so we can focus on getting to that tower over there. That tower is where they hold people to be executed, mainly because it makes them watch them prepare the creature that will kill them. We should try and get there was fast as we can and, by that time, Naruto should have caused a big enough distraction for us to escape before they even know Rukia-san is gone," Yoruichi explained, before a _very_ powerful blast of reiatsu exploded just a few feet away from them, nearly knocking them off their feet.

"Shihoin-Taichou, how nice to see you again," said Unohana Yachiru, with an almost demented smile on her face.

"U-Unohana-Taichou," Yoruichi whispered, having never seen that look on the calm Taichou's face, but quickly regained her composure.

"I had hoped to run into Uzumaki-kun but I guess I can spoil myself, if just this once," said Unohana, slowly licking her lips, before she swung her Zanpakuto in their general direction.

That single swing had enough power to send several chunks of the earth at the group of five. Yoruichi, still slightly shocked, realized it was too late to even attempt to dodge and just hoped some of the others could survive such an attack. However, there was a sudden flash of yellow light, and another wave of reiatsu knocked all the rocks away. When the dust settled it showed Naruto standing between them and the now bloodthirsty Taichou, with a similar grin on his own face.

"Uzumaki-kun, I'm surprised you came so quickly," said Unohana, the bloodlust rolling off both of them in waves.

"Yoruichi-san, please take everyone and go, I'm not sure if I'll be able to control myself during this fight," said Naruto, his voice unusually quiet.

"Naruto-san?" Yoruichi asked, as she took a single step forward, only for a Susanoo arm to nearly crush her.

"Don't you listen? Get the **fuck** out of here now!" Naruto yelled as he turned around.

When the group saw the look on Naruto's face, they all took a single step back. Normally Naruto is calm, or even cold, but this time his face was the picture of pure insanity. His smile was stretched to an almost impossible length, showing his almost fang like teeth. Naruto's eyes were as wide as they could physically become, showing them to be glowing with both bloodlust and power. Yoruichi could even see him almost shaking with anticipation for what was about to happen. Naruto had almost completely reverted back into the _creature_ he had been when they first met.

"Come on, we'll let Naruto-san handle this," said Yoruichi, receiving no arguments from the frightened humans.

"Smart, making them leave so I wouldn't use them against you," Yachiru commented, as they began to circle each other.

"I just didn't want them to get in the way, now shut up and fight!" Naruto yelled as he soared towards the most famous mass murder on the Shinigami's side.

"Finally!" Yachiru yelled back as she leapt to intercept the most famous mass murderer of the Shinigami race.

In mid lunge, Naruto formed a completely metal sword out of his own reiatsu, learning how to solidify it into an actual weapon many years ago. As they clashed, the ground beneath them cracked from the force but both of them just kept grinning. The next thing Naruto knew, Yachiru nearly stabbed a hidden dagger into the right side of his neck, which would be one of the best ways to kill him. If possible, Naruto demented grin grew even wider, now knowing that Yachiru isn't one to play fair but that's alright, he doesn't have to play fair either. So, in return, Naruto summoned up two Susanoo arms that then chucked two large pieces of racks at the dark haired Taichou. As expected, Yachiru managed to easily cut the rocks in half but what she didn't expect was for Naruto to come flying at her from behind them.

This proved to be a fatal flaw, on her part, because both Naruto's fist and the Susanoo's slammed into her body. The result was her being sent several yards back with her Zanpakuto bend ever so slightly.

"So, you managed to raise your Zanpakuto just in time to block one of my hits. I'm glad you haven't lost you edge!" Naruto yelled, his power flailing around like a raging beast, while he looked at her with an almost hungry expression.

"You should know that it will take more than that to beat a Kenpachi," Yachiru challenged, while she healed her cracked ribs.

"I don't want to beat you, I want to paint myself with your blood!" he yelled again, as his reiatsu formed a second blade in his free hand.

When they came together, the shockwave was powerful enough the knock the surrounding buildings. Naruto believed he was finally beginning to overpower Yachiru but this his shoulder began to tingle with a light amount of pain. Apparently Yachiru had managed to stab her dagger into Naruto's right should, which managed to pierce all the way through. When she swung again, Yachiru nearly took of Naruto's head but the blond jumped back just in time.

"What a clever move, you managed to wound my blade arm in the hopes it would be an easier fight for you. That would have been a good idea if you had met me before I learned my Zanpakuto's name!" Naruto yelled as he ripped the dagger from his flesh, without even flinching, and allowed some of his own reiatsu to flow into his own wound.

"Now I can heal my own wounds, just to make this fight go on longer!" and with that, Naruto's once injured arm was completely healed.

"Oh? Good," Yachiru whispered.

Then they collided again.

(Flashback)

Two monstrous forces collided out past the farthest districts, turning the area around them into rubble. These two forces had been fighting for the last twenty-four hours, without pause. They had fought each other once a week for the last three years straight. Each time a battle was over, both of them were on the verge of death but, a week later, both of them were back on their feet and almost twice as strong. Uzumaki Naruto and Shihoin Yoruichi were now fighting like two demons on the battlefield.

"Come on Naruto-_kun_, come and give me your blood!"

* * *

Review, give ideas, PM if you have any questions.


	9. Chapter 9

_"The master swordsman isn't interested in killing people. He only wants to perfect his art."_

— _Helen DeWitt_

* * *

When had she begun to act like this? Who was she? Was she still even Shihoin Yoruichi or was she something else? It all started after that first battle with Uzumaki Naruto, which was one of the hardest ones since she became a Taichou. He was like a machine, on the battlefield, never stopping for even a second and never pulling his punches. Each strike was clearly meant to end his opponents life and she seemed to be the only one capable to stand up to him. All the other Taichous refused to take her place but that was ok with her, she was beginning to enjoy their little fights. The satisfaction when she heard his bones break under her punch or the deliciously painful feeling of her neck nearly breaking when she hit the ground.

"Come on, faster!" Naruto demanded as they tried repeatedly to punch each other, but their fists connected with the same amount of force each time.

By now they were the only two that remained on the battlefield, with all the others being killed in the crossfire, but neither of them seemed to notice. In fact, the smell of death only seemed to make them fight harder but not for their fallen comrades, no they fought because it _felt_ good. It felt good to be hovering just on the verge of oblivion, to know that one of them could die at my moment. Yoruichi had realized this and was now addicted to fighting the blond child before her.

"Give me your arm!" Yoruichi yelled before he Zanpakuto cut into Naruto's left arm, nearly severing the limb completely from his body.

"GAH!" Naruto yelled in pain as he jumped back, just before his arm could be completely cut off.

"I said, give me your arm!" Yoruichi yelled, as she placed the hilt of her Zanpakuto in her mouth before picking up two fallen Zanpakuto.

"Then come and get it!" Naruto roared as he also placed a Zanpakuto in his mouth but was only able to use his right arm to hold a second one.

Even with the hilts in their mouths, both of them let out a war cry before charging each other head on. Members of the Second Division weren't meant to fight this way, in fact it was meant the be the opposite. They were meant to strike from the shadows, not attack someone head on with nothing but raw power. That kind of fighting was meant for the Eleventh Division, with them being nothing but bruits, and it was now that Yoruichi realized why they like it so much. Being able to prove you are stronger than someone is a great feeling, it's an addictive feeling. To put a hand around someone's neck and know that you have complete control if they live or die. It was a _God_ like feeling.

In a flash of steel, both warriors skidded to a stop just a few feet away from each other. Both of them knew that they got each other but now it was a battle to see who could stay standing the longest. Blood erupted from their bodies, at the same time, and yet they both still stood tall, neither willing to give in. That is until Naruto cursed and fell to his knees, with his chest cut wide open and deep enough to see bone. Even as he slowly bled to death, Naruto didn't hide the happy smile he had on his face.

"L-Looks like you finally killed me," Naruto whispered before he fell forward, never noticing the pained look in Yoruichi's eyes.

"You can't die, I'm still having fun," the golden-eyed Taichou whispered, before she too fell onto the ground.

"Shihoin-taichou!" a voice rang in the bloody filled air.

"Quick get Shihoin-taichou and this kid to a medical team, they're both about to die!" the voice yelled again.

(End Flashback)

Both Naruto and Yachiru skidded away from each other, with both carrying wounds from their current battle. Yachiru use to be known as the only person who could rival Yamamoto in both power and skill, even though the much older Taichou would never admit it himself. Even without releasing her Shikai, Yachiru was still incomprehensibly powerful and, not to mention, bloodthirsty. However, she had learned how to hold in her thirst for battle, and even learn how to heal people, but fighting Naruto had brought it back full force. Normally she would be relatively calm, which would scare her opponent tremendously, but fighting Naruto has made her just forget about staying calm.

"Come on, come on, come on!" she chanted over and over, each time their blades crossed, while moving faster each time.

Naruto, on the other hand, had become relatively quiet over the course of their battle. His once crazed smile had turned into a small frown and he no longer had a bloodthirsty look in his blue eyes. He even began only using his blades instead of also using his Susanoo. He looked as if her was _bored_ of the fight and was only continuing because Yachiru kept fighting. Now Naruto was simply evading Yachiru's every swing, with boredom completely showing to even to most dense of people.

"_What's wrong Naruto-san, don't you enjoy fighting again?_" Shinju asked, his shadowy form taking over Naruto's own shadow.

'It bores me now, I don't feel like fighting anymore,' Naruto thought as he ducked under a swing that could have taken his head off.

"_And why is that?_" the Zanpakuto asked as Naruto glanced down at his own shadow.

'It's no longer who I am," was Naruto's response before an idea popped into his head.

"Why so distracted, aren't you having fun?" asked Yachiru, who had noticed Naruto's bored look.

"Sorry but I don't want to fight you anymore, so I'm just going to end it now and move on," Naruto commented as he held out his hand out with his palm facing up.

"What makes you think you'll be able to get past me; I haven't even released my Zanpakuto."

"Rasengan," was all Naruto said.

"Rasengan?" Yachiru asked before a yellow ball of reiatsu, in the palm of Naruto's hand, slammed into her stomach.

The result was the entire midsection of her uniform being ripped to pieces, her Zanpakuto, which she tried to use to block the attack, was destroyed all the way down to the hilt, and she was blown back through several buildings. Naruto stood just a few inches from where Yachiru once stood, with an almost sad look on his face. Perhaps he should help her figure out who she truly is, but does he have the time? When had he become so focused on the fight and not saving Rukia? Why did his armor feel heavier than he remembered?

Naruto's answer came in the form of Shinju appearing, out of his shadow, and placing his hand right over Naruto's heart. This was the first time Naruto had actually been able to see his Zanpakuto's eyes and they seemed to be the same shade of blue that he had. There was a pulse of gold reiatsu and, a moment later, Naruto's bloodstained armor fell to the ground.

"_You are finally ready for me to teach you. Welcome to the world, Uzumaki Naruto Third Seat of the Fourth Division_," Shinju spoke as the shadows, which concealed his true identity, faded away to show who he really looked like.

"Well… you don't see that every day."

(Next day)

To say that Unohana was surprised, at waking up with six different Bakudo spells binding her, would be an understatement. The last thing she remembered was almost completely losing control of her mind and Naruto slamming some strange attack into her stomach. That attack, no the _Rasengan_, had been packed with enough compressed reiatsu to rip her into pieces, if it had even grown slightly unstable. Hell, she was surprised she only felt a little sore when she tried to move, instead of missing almost half her body.

"Oh, I'm glad you're awake Unohana-taichou, I treated your injuries the best I could but I'm still not an expert at healing damaged internal organs," said Naruto, who sat only a few feet from her in one of the Seireitei's many unused buildings.

"Why did you stop our fight?" she asked before Naruto got up and walked over to her, before sitting down in front of her.

"I'm not an experienced fighter, well not when compared to you, so maybe that has something to do with it. In our fight, I realized that we weren't fighting at all but were simply trying to hack each other to death in the most violent way possible. Slowly I also began to realize that extended exposure to by Shikai's leaked reiatsu was making us act more like savages than warriors. You see my natural reiatsu, when released, is known to make others feel an intense amount of fear towards me. However, my Shikai changes my reiatsu into something else entirely and it's not in a good way," said Naruto as he began to braid Unohana's hair back to the way it usually was.

"What does it matter, as a warrior you should know the appeal of fighting and crushing your enemy," said Unohana, who would have pushed him away if not for all the bindings that restrained her.

"Yes, I know the appeal of crushing an enemy but that's all I use to do. I know you know of what I speak, considering you resigned from being a Kenpachi to being nothing more than a healer. You understand that there is more to life than just the next fight, no matter how good fighting may feel, and you know how important each life is. My Shikai's reiatsu awakened something inside you that should have stayed buried until you decide to bring it back up," said Naruto as he finished braiding her hair before adjusting his now sealed Zanpakuto.

"It doesn't matter that I became like this again, I don't ever want to go back to being only a healer of the weak!" Unohana yelled, showing how much Naruto's reiatsu had affected her.

"Don't worry, you'll be free in a moment," said Naruto as he stood up and unsheathed his Zanpakuto.

"So, you're going to kill me after all," Unohana whispered while Naruto placed the tip of his Zanpakuto right where her heart was.

"I guess I should thank you. If not for our fight then I would have never truly realized what my Zanpakuto was really capable of," said Naruto before pushing his blade in.

(Ten Minutes later)

Naruto calmly walked out of the large white building that he had taken Unohana to and let out a deep sigh. He now had his sealed Zanpakuto strapped to his waist and Rukia's scarf wrapped loosely around his neck. Naruto then turned to face, a much calmer, Unohana as she walked out of the same building, with a repaired uniform. She then wordlessly tied Naruto's long hair back into its usually ponytail before patting his lightly on the shoulder.

"Thank you Uzumaki-kun, you should go before some other Shinigami arrive," said Unohana, with the kindness back in her voice and warmth in her eyes.

"No, thank you Unohana-taichou," said Naruto before he was gone in a burst of speed.

As Naruto traveled across the rooftops, he couldn't help but smile at the peace he now felt. When this all began, he acted without thinking and as such nearly broke his promise. He was lucky that he never truly went back to his original self, because it would take a lot of Shinigami before he was finally taken down. No he knew what he was meant to do and was on his way to the tall white tower. It was there that Rukia was being held and it was there he would save her from a fate she didn't deserve.

"Heh, this almost sounds like one of those books Rukia-dono likes to read," Naruto said, to himself, as he jumped over another building.

"Naruto-san!" the familiar voice of Yoruichi rang through the air, just as the purple haired ex-Taichou appeared next to the running Naruto.

"Yoruichi-dono," Naruto greeted, a smile on his face.

"So, what happened to you providing a large distraction by fighting every Shinigami in the Seireitei?" asked Yoruichi as she motioned for him to follow her to some place.

"Sorry but I'm not doing that plan any more, I've decided we should stick together until we rescue Rukia-dono," said Naruto, the cool wind blowing in his face as they passed over countless unsuspecting Shinigami below.

"Why the sudden change of heart?" she asked, glancing over at the blond Shinigami, but all she got in return was silence.

"Hey, what's with all the noise down there?" asked Naruto as he glanced down at a large group of Shinigami surrounding Ichigo and Chad.

"Those idiots, I told them to stay put but instead they end up causing even more trouble!" Yoruichi seethed before both she and Naruto jumped down beside the two humans below.

"Honestly Ichigo-dono, the plan was for us to remain undetected, not get more squads after us," said Naruto while his hand rested lightly on the hilt of Shinju.

"Oi, it's not my fault that I got tired of waiting!" yelled Ichigo, irritating being the dominant emotion on his face.

"Hey isn't that blond guy a member of the Fourth Division?" asked one of the Shinigami in the surrounding group.

"Oh, I guess I missed some of the Eleventh Division on my first pass, or did your Taichou grow a proper brain and split his forces just in case?" asked Naruto, a polite smile on his face the entire time but his tone was mocking.

"Ha, like someone from the Fourth Division could even defeat the lowest member of the Eleventh!" another Shinigami boasted.

"Chad-dono, would you mind clearing a path for us?" Naruto asked the gentle giant, who nodded before forming his power of his right arm.

"Sorry but we're in a hurry," said Chad before making a punching motion with his now strange arm.

Needless to say, the entire area was cleared in a blinding light of nothing but pure power. When the smoke cleared, it revealed all the Eleventh Division Shinigami on the ground with massive burns from where the energy hit them. By the time reinforcements arrived, the invading group was already on the move and far out of their reach.

(One Hour Later)

"Yoruichi-dono, please make sure no one interferes with this fight," said Naruto as he pulled his reverse-blade Zanpakuto from its sheath and took a standard stance.

"Naruto-san are you sure you want to do this?" asked Yoruichi as she glanced at another Shinigami, only a few yards away.

"I'm not really one for revenge but this is highly personal, so just make sure none of them get in the way," Naruto said, his smile gone and his eyes sharp.

"I can't believe this shit, why did we even stop in the first place?" asked Ichigo, who was looking between Naruto and the other Shinigami.

"I don't expect you to understand Ichigo-san but this man was one of the reasons Naruto-san decided to help us, and it wasn't a good reason," said Yoruichi with her arms crossed under her ample sized chest but she was clearly tense at the moment.

"I don't care how strong you are Naruto-san, you're not getting past here while I still breath," said the other Shinigami as he drew his own Zanpakuto.

"I'm not one for killing but I can still beat the shit out of you Renji-dono!"

* * *

Review, give ideas if you have them, PM me if you have any questions, and I have a rather good plan as for where I want to pairing to go but I'm still open to suggestions.


End file.
